Safe in the Dark
by Green Beast of Oita
Summary: It was in that moment that Rock Lee knew, he knew that the darkness did not conceal his thoughts, emotions, his inner turmoil, anymore. He was no longer safe in the dark. GaaLee, rated T.
1. Safe in the Dark

**Safe in the Dark**

**-Green Beast of Oita**

**AN/ Haha, I'm back. Hold, the applause. JKJK. Anyway, I promise that this piece won't be stupid. It may be poorly written, and have a horrible plot, due to my writing skills, or lack thereof. Anyway, as normal, it's GaaLee. Don't like? Don't read. It's that simple. Rated T for... mental... violence. No lemon, though there is some romance. Suggestions and reviews always welcome. Heck, at this point, I'd even settle for flames. I'm very review-deprived. **

–**x**

**We sat in the dark, and he asked, "Why aren't you smiling?"**

**It was in that moment that I knew, I knew that the darkness does not conceal my thoughts, emotions, my inner turmoil, anymore. **

**I turned away without a word.**

"**You are safe in the dark, but can you see me?"**

**With that, he left me alone in the dark, without my smile. **

**I'm no longer safe in the dark. The dark is safe in me. **

If he were to be described in a word, it would be **strong**. He was **strong**, having come this far with nothing but his self-created **strength**. That Rock Lee. He was hardworking, excited, **strong**, and optimistic. In the moments that he was caught without a smile, you knew it was life or death. For him. For anyone. For everyone.

No one would ever think that there was a **darker** side to him. No, that word would never apply to him. **Dark**. You would never look at him and think that he was anything like that word. All you would see was his **strong** side. You would be wrong. He had merely hidden that **darker** side away, under the mask that was his soul.

But it was there, that **darker** side of Lee. All he could do was suppress it, hope it never showed itself... but it was there.

Lee was in a below-average mood today. By below-average, I mean only slightly below happy. He was walking towards that every familiar training spot in the forest. The place where he had used to spend all day training, and where he received a life-altering talk from Gai-sensei. He headed to that place, almost subconsciously, holding only a blade of grass in his fingertips. He had picked it up an hour ago, admiring it's beautiful simplicity.

He rolled the grass between his fingers, sagging his shoulders a bit. He picked up his pace, not wanting to come across anyone in his current state of mind, that of vulnerability. He walked down dirt path after path, dragging his feet across the bits of stone and occasionally, metal.

When he reached the desired place, he slunk to the ground and leaned up against the cool wood of the tree stump that had remained planted there through all of the punches and kicks of years past.

"Waiting for the right time at the right place... when our worlds shattered. As the tips of our shoulders touched, and we became one in mental combat." Lee whispered, moving the grass again through the tips of his fingertips.

"You pushed me to the edge. I feel you changed me in so many ways. And where I am its hard to breathe." He said, softly, but louder than moments ago.

"Isn't it strange how the little things about you change the way I used to be... Everything changes... Eventually." Lee said forcefully, with an almost angry air about the words. He rolled the grass through his hand, and clenched it into a fist. When he opened his hand, he felt the tears that he had long withheld come to his eyes. The grass lay crushed, the green chemicals leaking out.

"I've got his blood on my hands."

Lee made no attempt to block the tears that now flowed down his face.

"How could you do this, then walk away?" He said under his breath before dragging a bandaged hand across his face, a sad attempt at wiping away the steady stream of water that now poured from his eyes.

Lee knew that there was something wrong with him. Gai had noticed, Neji had noticed, even TenTen had noticed. He hadn't been himself lately. The first thing he saw in his mind this morning was the face of the redhead that had almost taken his life. Gaara. And that was all he had thought about since.

He had thought about their fight, when he had been the first person to injure the other ninja, when the blood from the wound on his cheek had flowed onto Lee's bandaged arms. Then later, when Lee had his own injuries, and their blood had combined along with their minds as they battled each other. Both physically and mentally.

As **darkness** approached, Lee knew, somehow, he knew, that after today... His life would never be the same. That **dark** side of him had been awakened after his fight with Gaara, and it had been gathering strength ever since, now greatly intensified for reasons unknown.

"**Do we live?"**

**As we wander aimlessly, life is what we strive for, but never fulfill completely.**

"**Shall we die?"**

**Though it seems so harsh, a place like this would not want us.**

**Though we try, we have more to live for, so live we do.**

**--x**

**AN/ That came out a bit more poetic that I would have liked, but I am not confident enough in my skills(or lack thereof) to change it. Anyway, what did you people think? I know you are out there, just review, please? Oh, it is not over yet, by the way. It is a multiple chapter piece. **


	2. Sadness Chose Me

**AN/ Well, here it is, the second chapter of Safe in the Dark. Hopefully, this chapter will have a bit more substance than the first one. Oh well, you love me anyway... or not. GaaLee, T for mental struggles and slight romance. **

**Disclaimer/ (I forgot this last time.) I don't own Naruto. Or any of the characters. **

–**x**

**I think I talk a lot about absolutely nothing important to hide the fact that I absolutely hate talking about anything important. Or what that matters to me most. Or how I feel.**

**I let it consume me just because I cannot find the right words.**

**You say I chose sadness like it never once chose me. **

Rock Lee awoke from his dreams before the sun had risen, and he watched the sun's rays filter through his window as he lay in bed. Normally, he would have been up hours ago, training, but today he felt like doing absolutely nothing. He finally rose from his bed around the time when the sun was highest in the sky, if only to draw the curtains that hung around the window opposite his bed.

It was at that moment, when everything was silent, and the room was** dark** that he sat on the edge of his bed and cried for the second time that week. At that moment he also knew that silence was the worst type of pain. "And today I wonder, is silence that unbearable? Or does constant talking make some people feel better?" He thought of Naruto with these words. The blonde haired ninja almost always had something to say. Everyone just thought he was annoying, but maybe he was on to something. Maybe he just talked the silence away, to save everyone the pain that was tearing away at their subconscious.

As Rock Lee sat alone in his **dark** apartment, enduring the pain that silence brought, he began thinking about his life. He hadn't given it much thought, he just accepted it. "You know, I never realized how much I enjoy solitude..." He murmured, slipping back under the sheets on his bed. He slunk back into the silent world of dreams, thoughts of all sorts racing through his mind, though memories of Gaara ran stronger than any other.

Was this mental instability?

He woke a while later to the sound of knocking on his door. He sighed, and pulled the sheets up over his head. Only when the knocking increased to an annoying urgency did he rise from bed and stomp to the door. He wasn't in the state of mind to see anyone, but if this person didn't stop their knocking, his door would fall down.

Lee opened the door to see an angry, but worried, TenTen. Only when he saw her look of shock did he realize how he must have appeared in her eyes. He, who always wore the same attire and had neatly groomed hair, was now wearing only a pair of shorts and a shirt, his hair a tangled mess. He knew that his eyes must have been red from crying, and he could feel the tear stains that had made their home on his face.

TenTen struggled to find the words that she had prepared, eventually just settling on his name. "Lee..."

"What?" Lee asked, his voice hoarse from under-use. His eyes softened at the look he received from her.

"I haven't... No one's seen you for a while... Lee... Are you okay?" She asked, her previous anger banished by her teammate's current state. "Do you... want to go eat something?" She asked, judging by the way he looked like he could faint, she could tell he hadn't eaten much lately.

"Ramen?" Lee asked bluntly, hoping that by going there he'd come across Naruto. Apparently, a conversation with the blonde ninja could lighten anyone's mood.

"... Sure." TenTen replied softly, her eyes saying more than her words. "You might want to... you know." TenTen said after a minute of silence.

"Oh. Right." Lee said before shutting the door and walking into his room. He looked around slowly, before pulling off the pathetic outfit he currently wore, replacing it with the usual green jumpsuit. He ran a comb through his hair, with some struggle, but was soon ready for public eyes.

He walked back to the door and opened it, to see an annoyed TenTen. He shrugged and closed the door as he stepped out. "You could have invited me in..." TenTen said, as if it were common knowledge.

"Oh. Sorry." Lee said, not really sorry at all. His mind was clearly somewhere else. After a few blocks, on the way to the ramen shop, Lee looked down at the ground and murmured some illegible words.

"Lee... What's going on? Are you sick, or something?" TenTen asked, stopping in the road and grabbing his shoulder. He looked shocked for a moment before saying softly,

"I have been feeling like I want to melt away. Dissolve into a million pieces and float... Maybe this is what being sick does to you."

"That's probably the most you've said all week. Lee, there is something wrong with you." TenTen said after thinking about her teammate's words. She just couldn't understand what had happened to her cheerful, hardworking, green-clad friend. He wasn't even this worked up when he had to have his surgery.

The rest of the walk to the ramen shop was silent, as Lee stared at the ground the whole time, looking up only to part the drapes that stood as an entrance to the restaurant. The first thing he saw was Naruto sitting on a stool, an empty bowl already next to him.

TenTen smiled inwardly before walking over and shoving Lee with a little more force than necessary into the seat next to Naruto, then taking the seat on the other side of him. Naruto looked up, a noodle hanging from his mouth. "Hey Bushy-brow!" He said in that loud voice that everyone had grown used to. "Where've you been lately?" He slurped the noodle into his mouth.

Lee looked up at the blonde ninja. "... Life." He replied after a moment of thought. Naruto looked at TenTen questioningly, receiving only an equally confused look from the female ninja.

After some small talk that Lee took almost no part in, Naruto ordered his third bowl of ramen. TenTen ordered a bowl for Lee, who insisted that he wasn't hungry. When the noodles arrived, Naruto instantly started, and TenTen just held Lee's bowl in annoyance, as he refused to eat it.

Lee listened without much interest to Naruto and TenTen's gossip for a few moments.

"Have you seen Sakura lately? She hasn't been around much." Naurto asked between a mouthful of ramen.

"I hear Tsunade has her training really hard." TenTen replied casually.

"Oh! Gaara is coming to see Tsunade soon!" Naruto said in a sudden act of genius. "To talk about the alliance, I think. You know he's Kazekage, right?" Naruto said, putting another few noodles in his mouth.

Lee almost choked on his next breath of air. He clenched his fists tightly, trying to stop the flood of memories that he knew would bring a new rush of tears. He felt his eyes becoming wet again, and the chopstick he had been holding was nothing more than splinters of wood.

Naruto continued talking about how he would become Hokage and catch up with the sand ninja, while TenTen looked down at her teammate with worry in her eyes.

"I... I have to.. leave." Lee stammered, his eyes widening. He dropped a few bills on the table to pay for the company before disappearing in an angsty cloud of angst. (Sorry, had to say that.) Naruto stared at the spot where Lee had been, confusion in his eyes, and TenTen just sighed, knowing that he should just be alone.

"Thanks, Naruto. It was nice seeing you again." She said, pushing the money Lee had left towards him before heading off in the opposite direction, that of her home.

Naruto looked from one direction to the other, his mind working furiously to process what had just happened.

**--x**

**AN/ That was nearly as dark and poetic as the last one. Oh well, review, please?**


	3. Live in Victory

**AN// Well, after eight months I'm finally updating. Amazing, no? It's a short chapter, though. And don't expect this to happen again before Christmas, because I recently made 2nd chair bassoon in my region band. Score! Anyway, I'm not sure what my state of mind was when I wrote the previous two chapters, so this chapter's writing style might be completely different. Can't say I didn't warn you… 'Cause I just did.**

**Disclaimer// I don't own Naruto. In case that wasn't obvious.**

--x

**I want to embrace tomorrow,**

**And forget long ago.**

**Heal from all my wounds,**

**Receive mercy,**

**And believe my life has meaning.**

**I want to live in victory. **

Lee shut the door behind him and resisted the urge to throw himself to the floor. He made a few sad attempts at breathing before finally succeeding in gathering the air he needed. "This…cannot be… happening." Lee managed to choke out through struggled breaths.

He made his way slowly to the bathroom and looked into the mirror. He could see his face in the glass clearly for a moment before his vision filled with **darkness**. He closed his eyes and brought a bandaged hand to his forehead as he cried out sharply in surprise.

_Is this not reality, Lee-chan?_

"Who is that?" Lee's eyes shot open for a few moments before he clamped them shut again. "Who are you?!"

_I never thought I'd find you alone. _

"What do you want?!" Lee suddenly became aware of the tears threatening to form.

_I'm recovering what's been lost. _

Lee's hand struck out and hit the mirror with more than enough force to shatter it. He cried out again as shards of glass pierced the skin on his wrist, and he could feel the blood spilling into the sink basin.

_Don't worry, Lee-chan. I've only just found you, you won't be going anywhere. _

[TenTen POV]

TenTen walked briskly back to her house, her eyes on their ground and her mind in deep thought. In her current state of mind, she didn't notice the pink-haired ninja coming from the other direction until said ninja was on the ground, complaining loudly.

"Sakura! I'm sorry." TenTen held out a hand to help the other girl up. "Geez, TenTen…" Sakura whined, rubbing her forehead before standing up.

"I said I was sorr-" TenTen began before Sakura interrupted her, "Anyway, have you seen Lee? Tusnade asked me to see how he's doing 'cause he's been skipping missions, and he wasn't at his room or the training field…" Sakura trailed off and looked around as if hoping the male ninja would jump out, loudly proclaiming his love for her as normal.

"Oh, Lee. I took him out for ramen with Naruto, he left for his apartment about ten minutes ago. He's not doing so well, though. Maybe I should go with you to see how he's doing…" TenTen said, craning to follow Sakura's stare.

"Fine, he might listen to you. Well, no time for small talk, let's go." Sakura said before running off in the direction of Lee's apartment.

"Tell me how Lee is." Sakura said as they neared Lee's house. "Why the sudden interest?" TenTen questioned with a sly tone. Sakura blushed slightly before shaking her head and muttering something under her breath. She sped up and stood at the front door, hesitating to knock.

TenTen arrived moments later, irritated at being deserted. She reached over and knocked loudly on Lee's door. "Lee, it's TenTen! Oh, and Sakura. Yeah, she's here too." Sakura hit TenTen's hand away a bit more than playfully and knocked again when Lee didn't reply.

"Here, I'll just use the key." Sakura said and pulled a silver key ring out from her weapons pouch. TenTen gave her another sly implication and Sakura blushed again. Still, she slid the correct key in and opened the door.

She stuck her head in and looked around, immediately sensing that something was wrong. She stepped inside and called out Lee's name hesitantly. TenTen came inside after Sakura had moved, her expression no longer playful. "Lee!" She called out with a hint of anger. It was then that she noticed the bathroom light was on. She nudged Sakura and moved towards the room.

"Lee?" Sakura asked, her tone more gentle than TenTen's. TenTen made her way past Sakura and stepped into the bathroom. It took her a few moments to register the scene in front of her before she let out a loud scream.

Lee was unmoving on the floor, propped up against the wall. His right arm was covered in blood and bits of glass, while the sink and mirror were practically dripping the red liquid. The hair on one side of his forehead had been brushed aside, revealing a fresh carving of the same mark that adorned Gaara. He held a shard of glass in his hand, the tip gleaming with blood.

"LEE!"

[Lee POV]

"NO!" Lee shot up grabbed his forehead with a shriek of pain. "Oh, Lee! I'm so glad..." TenTen broke off and ran over to Lee's hospital bead and pulled him into a gentle embrace.

Lee barely acknowledged his teammate's concern. He fingered the bandages on his forehead before speaking. "My head. Why...?" He started to unwrap the strips of cloth as he noticed that the bandages usually on his left arm had been replaced, and his right arm was in a cast. TenTen grabbed hold of his hand and pulled it away. "Lee, you just got a little cut, it's nothing. Leave it."

_She's lying, Lee-chan._

"Shut up!" Lee yelled, yanking back his hand with a wince of pain. TenTen pulled back as if she had been struck. Lee reached up and struggled to remove the bandanges. He then reached up and traced the wound. He ignored the searing pain in his forehead as he ran his fingers over the cuts. "Kanji. What does it say?" He asked quietly.

TenTen looked down and didn't answer.

_Maybe she can't read. _The voice in his head laughed hysterically.

"Please."

TenTen looked up and met his eyes. "It... says. Love." She looked away, unable to look at him directly.

Lee shook his head and snickered quietly. TenTen leaned foward worrieldy. His threw back his shoulders and broke out into a loud laugh.

_You could kill her right now, Lee-chan. I wouldn't tell anyone._

**Only when you know  
**

**your dreams will come true,  
**

**do you walk through the dark,  
**

**and strengthen yourself as you move  
**

**past those who don't want you. **


End file.
